Comedy

As night begins to fall at HowTheLightGetsIn, the Ring and the Stage turn from hubs of intellectual activity into venues abuzz with some of the UK's best comedy acts. With an indecently funny line-up, the laughs are (almost) guaranteed to drown out the party next door. We're joined by comics such as Phil Wang, Lou Sanders, and Ahir Shah rubbing shoulders with some of the best up-and-coming talent on the comedy circuit.

Lou Sanders

Brilliantly bonkers Lou Sanders’ comedy is a blend of the surreal, punchy and innovative. Consistently producing some of the best work on the Edinburgh Fringe over the past 6 years, 2018 has seen Sanders’ star soar with rave reviews for her show 'Shame Pig' and appearances on Dave’s Hypothetical coupled with being a regular contestant on the latest series of Dave’s Taskmaster. “A reminder of just how good a straight stand-up Sanders is...a joyous embracement of her eclectic life” ★★★★ - (Fest)

Ahir Shah

Ahir Shah’s fiery and funny stand-up is “charismatic and of rewardingly cerebral approach”(The Guardian), picking him up coveted nominations for Best Show two years running at the 2017 and 2018 Edinburgh Comedy Awards, and an appearance on Live At The Apollo. “Intricately crafted, profoundly moving, howlingly funny” ★★★★★ - (The Daily Telegraph)

Tony Law

Tony Law is simply the greatest surrealist stand-up of the past 10 years. He has previously been nominated for Best Show at the Edinburgh Comedy Awards, appeared on Have I Got News For You and in 2017 co-created ‘The Battle for Icetopia”, an experimental comedy opera on ice that won the Chortle Award for Event of the Year. “Takes post-modern stand-up to a dangerously funny new level” (★★★★ The Guardian)

Jess Fostekew

Jess's personal website insists that she 'exists in real life', as well as working professionally as a comedian and actor. Lauded by Fest as 'consistently hilarious', one of her comedic focuses is eating, about which she has a dedicated podcast called 'Hoovering'. She is also co-host of The Guilty Feminist, and star of BBC's Motherland.

Micky Overman

Dutch comic Micky Overman has quickly garnered critical acclaim for her smart, dark stand-up, having graced the finals of the Leicester Square New Comedian competition and picked up a Chortle nomination for Best Newcomer. Well-travelled Micky comes to the UK via Canada and Ireland, and has collected enough outrageous insights into universal human nature to make even the gruffest sceptic smirk. Her debut show, Role Model, concerns Micky's eventful spell as nanny to a privileged 13-year-old girl.

Olga Koch

Olga Koch is a charismatic and whip-smart stand-up, whose 2018 debut show ‘Fight’ was nominated for Best Newcomer at the Edinburgh Comedy Awards and received a slew of four and five star reviews. “A very confident debut...an assured and endearing hour of stand-up storytelling” ★★★★ - The Daily Telegraph

Heidi Regan

Heidi has been working the stand-up circuit for over ten years and suffers from a self-professed phobia of writing in the first person. Her quirky act won her the BBC New Comedy Award in 2017 and the So You Think You're Funny award in 2016, and she has also received international recognition for her screenwriting chops. Her dry, understated style sees her drift through her material while the audience processes the joke just gone, and her range of topics only adds to the wonderful disorientation: Regan riffs on everything from her love of shark B-movies to her coming-out story.

Glenn Moore

A joke machine, Glenn Moore’s 2018 Edinburgh Comedy Award-nominated show was “the best showcase of pure joke-writing skill on the fringe” (★★★★ The Guardian). He’s appeared on Mock The Week and is a regular presenter on Absolute Radio, and is an in-demand writer for TV and Radio.

Maisie Adam

Having picked up a nomination for Best Newcomer at the Edinburgh Comedy Awards last year, Yorkshire-born Maisie Adam's takeover of the UK continues. Armed with northern charm and an earthy, effervescent stage presence, Maisie's debut Edinburgh show Vague - which she recently brought to London - concerns her attempts to remain dedicated to the "sesh" while navigating a fun-sucking medical condition.

Alex Kealy

A mixture of self-deprecation and satire, Alex Kealy’s 2018 show “A Kealy’s Heel” was “a storming show from the whimsical funnyman (The Sunday Times). He’s written for Mock The Week and is a “rising star of the British stand-up scene” with “a reservoir of memorable gags” (The List).

Laura Lexx

"One of the most delightful performers you're ever likely to see" ~ GQ

Brighton-based Laura serves an infectiously bubbly, upbeat routine, though beyond the smiley exterior she has big things to say about depression, anxiety, and other demons. Showing us that it's possible - nay, enjoyable - to laugh about serious issues, Laura's toured throughout the country in venues from the Comedy Store to The Glee Club. Having made her debut on Live at the Apollo at the end of last year, she comes to HowTheLightGetsIn Hay this May off the back off her award-winning show 'Trying', which she took from the Fringe all the way to London's Soho Theatre.

Stuart Laws

Comedian Stuart Laws has - with his own unique mix of observations and silliness - supported James Acaster on tour. He also runs production company Turtle Canyon Comedy, which has made short films with comedians including Nick Helm and Ed Gamble. “You’ll struggle to find a comedian with a better jokes per minute rate… like a one-man episode of Arrested Development” ★★★★ - (Fest)

Sarah Bennetto

"Sarah Bennetto is a storyteller par excellence" ~ Time Out, London

Originally from Melbourne, Australia, Sarah now lives and performs in the UK, and has an impressive portfolio of appearances on stage, TV and radio. She is the founder of experimental comedy collective Storytellers' Club, whose raconteurs tell tall tales all over the country. We can't wait to welcome her to HowTheLightGetsIn Hay.

Ben van der Velde

Ben Van der Velde's lively, witty, audience-interactive routine has gotten audiences slapping their knees from the British Isles to Greece, and from Scandinavia to Switzerland. He's a regular at such eminent comedy clubs as The Stand, Komedia, and The Backyard, but he's got unconventional venues under his belt too such as RAF bases, large corporate events, and the set of Deal or No Deal. His other pursuits include the establishment of the Church of the Holy Kazoo, which allows its members to busk in public unimpinged by proclaiming it as a religious freedom.

Brett Goldstein

'Brett Goldstein has such a great story to tell, it almost seems like cheating... Expertly told ... with charisma and skill'. ~ Chortle

Comedian, writer and actor Brett Goldstein has starred in Ricky Gervais’ Derek as well as writing and starring in superhero comedy SuperBob, and appearing in Doctor Who,in addition to his masterful story-driven live comedy shows.

Garrett Millerick

Garrett Millerick has a particular knack of channeling his frustrations and anger into ‘very funny indeed’ (Reviews Hub) stand-up comedy. His 2018 breakout show, Sunflower, took that year's Fringe Festival by storm, and returned in February of this year for a run at Soho Theatre. His debut radio show, Do Gooders, concerns mid-level charity workers and features such eminent comedians as Jack Dee and Meera Syal. We can't wait to welcome him to HowTheLightGetsIn Hay.

Robyn Perkins

“This is a window into her life delivered with refreshing directness and plenty of feisty humor.” ~ Fringe Review

English Comedian of the Year Finalist Robyn Perkins performs ‘sharp, insightful, touching, but above all really, really funny’ stand-up (Three Weeks), and has been cracking up audiences since 2011. With a wealth of prestigious accolades under her belt, including FAFBA New Act of the Year Finalist 2015, Robyn often throws her scientific background into the comedic mix. Most recently she's been touring her new show Mating Selection, which peels the hood off the weird social construct we know as 'dating' so as to explore (and poke fun at) the morality of sexual attraction.

Huge Davies

Commended by Chortle as 'Jet black, funny and unsettling', Huge's surreal, dark humour blends perfectly onstage with his quirky customised keyboard (his absurdist tinge manifests in bizarre pieces like the 'Emma Watson Waltz'). Having entered the comedy scene in 2014, Huge has already supported stand-up stars including Nish Kumar and Sara Pascoe, and comes to HowTheLightGetsIn this May off the back of his appearance on Comedy Central at The Comedy Store.

Eleanor Tiernan

Hailing from Ireland, Eleanor ditched civil engineering to make people laugh for a living. She performs at venues all over Ireland and the UK and is known for her appearances on such shows as RTE's satirical Irish Pictorial Weekly and Comedy Central's Alternative Comedy Experience. She is determined to achieve career success without resorting to a sextape leak.